{"id":50052,"date":"2024-04-22T22:00:36","date_gmt":"2024-04-22T20:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=2029079"},"modified":"2024-04-23T00:31:30","modified_gmt":"2024-04-22T22:31:30","slug":"bbc-radio-3-controller-refutes-dumbing-down-claims-its-just-an-insult","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/bbc-radio-3-controller-refutes-dumbing-down-claims-its-just-an-insult\/","title":{"rendered":"BBC Radio 3 Controller refutes \u201cdumbing down\u201d claims: \u201cIt\u2019s just an insult\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sam Jackson spoke with this week’s issue of Radio Times magazine. <\/p>

By James Hibbs\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Monday, 22 April 2024 at 20:00 PM<\/p>

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With this year\u2019s Proms on the horizon in a few months\u2019 time, BBC\u2019s boss of the classical music festival and controller of Radio 3 has addressed criticism that he has \u2018dumbed down\u2019 the station.<\/p>\n

Sam Jackson, who was previously in charge of Classic FM, Smooth and Gold, was appointed Radio 3 Controller in April 2023, with the role being announced in January of that year.<\/p>\n

Recently, he has been subject to criticism surrounding scheduling decisions, such as moving Record Review to Saturday afternoons, the arrival of Friday Night Is Music Night from Radio 2 and giving Jools Holland his own Saturday show.<\/p>\n

Speaking in this week\u2019s issue of Radio Times magazine<\/strong>, Jackson addressed the condemnation he has received from some Radio 3 fans, saying: \u201cIt\u2019s very easy to use that ludicrous phrase \u2018dumbing down\u2019, but nobody ever really defines what it means, it\u2019s just an insult.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause I ran Classic FM, people will naturally go, \u2018Well, are you qualified to run Radio 3?\u2019 I think often it\u2019s snobbery against commercial radio and partly snobbery against me, perhaps.\u201d<\/p>\n

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BBC Broadcasting House.<\/span><\/figcaption> Mike Kemp\/In Pictures via Getty Images<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n

Asked if the criticism bothers him, Jackson said: \u201cI don\u2019t like it when I\u2019m out on a dog walk across the Easter weekend with one of my kids and my phone is buzzing because a critic has decided to put out a tweet with personal criticism of me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more:<\/strong><\/p>\n